| February, 2016

Being named to the University of Miami’s Hall of Fame in 2008 was one thing, but Octavia Blue was humbled on Sunday when her #10 jersey was retired by the school prior to the team’s 67-56 overtime victory over Virginia Tech at the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables.

“It was an awesome day,” Blue said. “It was really special.”

The University of Miami retired assistant coach Blue’s jersey before the game. She is the fourth player in program history to receive the honor, joining Maria Rivera, Frances Savage and Tamara James.

“The Hall of Fame was awesome,” Blue said. “There is a 10-year gap after you finish playing before you can be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Right at my 10th year, they put me in. That was an unbelievable honor. I got in with a great class. I was surprised and honored to be inducted with them.”

“(Sunday) was crazy,” Blue added. “It felt like 10 times more special. I don’t like to compare the two because they are both great honors, but when you go into the Hall of Fame there are basically eight to 10 of you going in and when you get your jersey retired, they are singling you out. It makes you look back and reflect over your whole career with all of the people who have been involved in your development and helped, had a hand in your success as an individual. It all came together and it hit me like a ton of bricks. It was a really proud moment for me.”

Blue played with the Hurricanes from 1994-98 and still sits in seventh place on Miami’s all-time scoring list with 1,724 career points. She also ranks seventh in career field goals made with 671.

After her Miami career ended, Blue was the 15th overall draft pick by the Los Angeles Sparks in the 1998 WNBA Draft.

Blue went on to play with the Sparks and the Houston Comets, as well as playing professionally overseas with stops in Turkey, Greece, Israel, Poland, and France before beginning her coaching career.

Coaching took her to St. Thomas, St. John’s and Georgia Tech universities before she returned to Miami and joined coach Katie Meier’s staff in 2012.

Admittedly, Blue was a “late bloomer.” She was an eighth-grader at Nova Middle School when the girls’ basketball coach saw her shooting baskets in a PE class and convinced her to give the sport a try. She went on to star during her high school career at Nova High School and earned a scholarship at the University of Miami.

“When I got to high school, I was really good at it, but I was really raw,” said the 39-year-old Blue. “I didn’t have skill. I just had natural ability and that actually landed me at the University of Miami.

“When you start off so young, it could probably get stale because you have played so long, but it was still very new and fresh to me and I was excited about the game and that is how I played,” she continued. “All of that passion enabled me to get a college scholarship and, from then on, the successes just kept piling up. The opportunities kept presenting themselves.”

When the WNBA was founded in 1997, Blue knew it was something she wanted to pursue. After an Achilles tendon injury cut short her professional playing career, Blue had no aspirations of coaching. Her former college coach convinced her to coach the post players at St. Thomas University and that led to her Division 1 stints.

“For the players I coach now, it is something I tell them to strive and try to be the best in anything you put your hands in,” said Blue, Hurricanes’ recruiting coordinator and is responsible for the development of Miami’s post players. “There is so much more to accomplish.

“For me, I want to continue to inspire young people and that’s why we coach,” said Blue, who hopes to be a Division 1 head coach someday. “When you are 18 to 22, those are the years you are in college and those are the most impressionable years of their lives. That’s what coaches and teachers, and educators, do. We help mold young people. I want to continue to do that and be a role model and a model citizen, and good things will come.”

Her recognition on Sunday will last a while.

“(Sunday) had to be at the top of the list of anything of anything that ever happened to me,” she said. “Obviously, I love the University of Miami. I had so much support from family and friends. I had people come from Deerfield Beach. People that I have known since I was 6 years old all the way up to my agent who managed my professional career – she flew down from New York. So many people who have helped me along the way were all there to celebrate that special moment with me – my family, my mother … it was just really special and a nice honor.”

While Deadpool dominated last weekend’s box office, both independent movies Risen and The Witch: A New England Folktake (printed on posters as “The VVitch”) were moderately successful, given their modest production budgets. Both films could not be more different forms of entertainment. According to Rotten Tomatoes, [the Biblical tale] Risen was well-received by the public, but was not certified “fresh” by the mainstream critics. In contrast, The Witch was not warmly received by the public, but was embraced by mainstream critics.

The Witch is an art house horror movie that was obviously influenced by The Blair Witch Project and Val Lewton’s The Seventh Victim and I Married a Zombie. The Witch is what Rob Zombie tried to do with his home movie, The Lords of Salem. With shades of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, The Witch is pure rural horror with great attention to detail.

It opens with a religious family of seven being exiled from a New England plantation. While Tomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy, a South Florida native) plays peek-a-boo with her infant sibling, the baby disappears into the black forest. Things get far worse for the exiled family.

For horror fans suckled on the slice and dice horror of Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers, this film will feel slow.

Director Robert Eggers puts the viewer into another world. The language is 17th Century English with the generous use of the pronoun “Thou.” Visually, this film echoes the nightmare paintings of Francisco Goya and the contemporary (to the timeframe) work of Johannes Vermeer.

This is not a happy film, but this motion picture is pure horror, much like the cult film Se7en. It will be talked about in film school for years to come.

Truly Deadpool is in a universe far different from The Witch, which is a welcome relief.

It opens with the Chicago song “You’re my Inspiration” as we watch a slow motion car wreck. During this montage, a roster of fake credits roll, creating the first belly laughs for the film, which last right through the post-credit teaser inspired by Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

So who is Deadpool, besides being another mutant superhero who wears a shabby Spider-Man costume found in a Salvation Army store? He is Wade (Ryan Reynolds), a con artist mercenary who finds the love of his life, Vanessa (Morena Baccarin) but discovers he has terminal cancer. He learns of an experimental drug that may cure his disease, but, of course, the drug is administered by a certified mad scientist who turns Wade into a mercenary mutant.

Under Director Tim Miller’s firm direction, Deadpool takes all the clichés of a successful comic book movie and makes them feel fresh. There are ties to the eight X-Men movies with a few Easter eggs tossed in from the Disney Marvel comic universe. The fourth wall is broken with Reynolds being the perfect conduit.

Both The Witch: A New England Folktale and Deadpool know how to appeal to their respective audiences.

Thank you so much to the City of Deerfield Beach and the Deerfield Beach Historical Society for hosting the Retirees, Seniors & Friends on Feb. 18 for Black History Month.

Your hospitality was amazing. The group had an enlightening experience visiting the 1926 Deerfield Beach Elementary School building; the 1920 Old School Museum; the 1923 Butler House; the 1948 Delta Masonic Lodge and the First Zion Missionary Baptist Church established in 1902.

The Black History Month tour hosted 59 members of a prominent African American travel club named Retirees, Seniors & Friends based in Miami-Dade County. The group consists of African Americans who are professionals and had successful careers in medicine, education and the military and as business owners. Many of them are the first generation in their family to attend college during the era of legal segregation. The group consisted of Miami’s black elite.

Some of the travel club members came from Homestead, Miami Gardens, Miami, Miramar, West Little River, Hollywood, Pembroke Pines and West Park.

Here are a few comments written on their surveys:

“I really enjoyed the tour, it was a lot of history given that I was not aware of … very good trip.”

“This was a very Educated Trip. Excellent!”

“Tour itself was very interesting and the guide, and others who welcomed us, was just amazing … The school at City Hall was awesome. I saw books I learned to read from …”

2016 marked the sixth annual Black History Month tour that my non-profit organization has hosted for this African American travel club. My organization [of which I am the executive director/curator] is the Museum of Lifestyle & Fashion History in Delray Beach, which is a non-profit 501(c)3. We have coordinated previous Black History Month tours in Florida to Delray Beach, West Palm Beach, Lake Worth, Mims/Titusville, Sanford and Ft. Pierce.

From my research about Deerfield Beach, I was inspired by its rich history; therefore, I recommended the City of Deerfield Beach for the Black History Month tour for the Retirees, Seniors & Friends.

Everyone welcome! During the Lenten season we abstain from meat on Fridays, so let’s get together and have some fish! The Friday Fish Fry will be held again on March 11. $10 per person; $5 for kids. Call 954-427-2225 or visit http://stambrosedeerfieldbch.com.

St. Gabriel Council of Women hosts their annual fashion show “Leap Into Spring”, including fashions from five area stores. $39 donation. Call Georgette at 954-946-2551 to RSVP.

Princesses & Superheroes Party

Saturday, Feb. 27, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Pompano Citi Centre

1955 N. Federal Hwy.

Pompano Beach, FL 33062

Calling all princesses and superheroes to dress up in costume and help save the kingdom! Meet Batman, Iron Man, Wonder Woman, Ella and Anna and get a free picture. Create a cape or crown. Complimentary face painting. $1 carousel rides. For information, visit www.pompanociticentre.com.

This beloved annual event returns with rides, food, drink, an unbeatable roster of live music, entertainment, games and much more. For a roster of performers, times and ticket information, visit www.stambrosecarnival.com.

I recently attended a concert in Delray Beach that featured the harmonious excellence of the Legato Vocal Ensemble. The gifted group of mostly African American singers and musicians delivered a powerful performance to a full house at Church of the Palms. The first half of the concert included traditional arrangements of some classic hymns, such as “Come Thou Fount” and “A Wonderful Savior”. A stirring rendition of the spiritual “Elijah Rock” drew vigorous applause from the racially-diverse audience. It also caused me to reflect upon the power of song and faith in the history of Negroes in America.

It is well-documented that slaves found comfort and hope in the Christian faith, often expressing both in the moving spirituals that were part of their worship gatherings. Though many songs were passed down orally, making it difficult to identify the original composers, they possess an enduring appeal that stirs the soul of any generation. Songs like “Swing Low Sweet Chariot”, “Rock My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham”, and “Steal Away to Jesus” provided solace and strength to a people who identified with the plight of Abraham’s descendants in Egyptian bondage. It is even known that some spirituals also served as protest songs that inspired and informed about the path to freedom in the north.

Later songs like “Oh, Freedom” and “We Shall Overcome” carried on the tradition of hope during the Civil Rights Movement. Many of the leaders of the movement, such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Rev. Andrew Young, Rev. Joseph Lowery and Rev. Jesse Jackson were men who came from the church motivated by convictions that were shaped by their faith.

To this day, numerous churches can be found in any community with a preponderance of black residents. This attests to the powerful role that faith plays in the life of African Americans, who sing and worship with passion in the average black church on any given Sunday.

Negro faith predates slavery in America, despite the negative stereotypes of a superstitious and pagan people as portrayed in films about Africans. Church history has documented that the Christian faith was firmly established in North Africa, Egypt and Ethiopia as it expanded from Jerusalem in the first century. In fact, the churches in North Africa and Ethiopia were the leading churches in the second century. It has been argued that many of the church fathers, such as Clement, Origen, Athanasius and Augustine, were men of African descent.

These facts are to be appreciated and celebrated as we observe Black History Month. Undergirding the achievement of many individuals of color was a faith that inspired them to stand firm while striving upward and longing for a better day. It was a faith that trusted God’s promises of deliverance and blessing. It was a faith that inspired them to believe that they were worth far more than what their circumstances indicated. It was a faith that helped them to hold on believing that they would see the glory of God.

It is a faith that must be passed on to our children and grandchildren, a faith that will sustain them both now and in the future, a faith expressive of the same sentiment and conviction as that of Moses in Psalm 90:1. “Lord, Thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.”

During this observance of Black History Month, let us recognize the undeniable and indomitable faith of the Negro.

Many made merry at the opening weekend of the Renaissance Festival in Quiet Waters Park. The annual event takes place over seven weekends this year, running until March 27.

Guests could watch a show while they grabbed some food and drink and strolled through the booths filled with everything from authentic garb to swords and pottery. A few craftsmen showed off their glass blowing skills while washing wenches got the audience all wet and pirates blasted cannons. Kids bounced on bounce houses nearby, climbed the rock wall, went down the zipline or rode on rides. Of course, the highlight of the event is always the joust with royalty present.

To find out more about this joyous family friendly event, visit www.ren-fest.com.

Highlands Christian Academy boys soccer coach Darryl Mauro said his team did as well as expected given the fact they didn’t train as a full unit until midway through the season.

The Knights finished the 2015-16 campaign with an impressive 14-2-2 record following a hard-fought 2-1 loss to host Trinity Christian in the Class 1A regional semifinal.

Highlands opened the season with a 1-1 draw with Coral Springs Charter and suffered its only loss of the season to King’s Academy, 2-0, in the third game of the year on Nov. 10 and went unbeaten the rest of the way until falling to Trinity Christian.

“We had the early loss and we do what we can with the players we have,” Mauro said. “When you have four full-time players and the rest don’t touch the ball until October, we only have they little window to try and teach them.”

“They do have fight when they need to and it usually comes when their backs are against the wall,” Mauro added. “We went down 2-0 and we fought and we fought.”

Jorge Zambrano and Joey Daanti scored for the host Warriors (14-3-4), while Evan Henderson scored for the Knights with less than 10 minutes remaining in the game.

Mauro moved senior defender Caleb Bien-Aime up top and hoped no one would break through as he changed his formation to a 3-4-3. He also received strong play from senior forward Elijah Kerr.

“I had two ninth graders (Bryce Everette and Kyle Coulson) on the outside and a senior (Henderson) on the inside (defenders),” Mauro said. “They did their job. Our goalie (freshman John Harris) was sick all week and he did as well as he could.”

The Knights will graduate four starters and Mauro hopes that the school will start an intramural program.

“It would be more established with a soccer-minded (philosophy) so the kids can touch the ball because our biggest issue is, since we are a small school, most of our players don’t touch the soccer ball again until October,” Mauro said. “That’s why I have a full head of grey.”

Mauro said, in addition to the football players, another issue he faces is that he didn’t get his international baseball players until early in the season.

“I was working with baseball so that they could finish their club ball and I don’t think we had a full training session with them until mid-December,” said Mauro, who had to wait on forward Tisjar Clotida and defender Swindly Lint to come out for the team after baseball had ended. “We beat some good teams this year and we tied Hillel, which was our only other blemish.”

Mauro said the team ran into a more talented Trinity Christian squad. It was still an improvement for the Knights, who didn’t make it past the district semifinals last year and graduated a lot of seniors from that squad.

“I had two baseball players and a couple of others come back,” Mauro said. “I am thankful I can coach with my son. I just want good soccer and today wasn’t their best. I thought (Trinity Christian) was a little more talented. They had five players up top. Their midfield and forwards had a little more energy than we had.”

“Today, I just think it was the pressure on them,” Mauro concluded. “We teach them to play patient, simple soccer. I want them to dribble. I want them to pass. I just love good soccer.”

While most people celebrated Valentine’s Day at the Renaissance Festival or the Pioneer Days Festival, yours truly was busy screening Spotlight, a movie about the child sexual abuse scandal perpetrated by Catholic priests in Boston. While the subject matter is distasteful, Spotlight is a masterful film that has earned its accolades.

The film opens on Valentine’s Day in 1976. A child is abused by a priest who is detained by the Boston police. A representative from the Catholic Church is called in with a bundle of cash to give to the family. The film fast forwards to 25 years later when a new editor, Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber), takes the reins of the Boston Herald newspaper. A veteran of “a Miami paper” and The New York Times, Baron assigns the Spotlight team to investigate the subject of pedophilia in the Boston community.

“Spotlight” is the code name of the investigative team of veteran journalists from The Boston Herald. Walter “Robby” Robertson (Michael Keaton) is the editor of the Spotlight team who confronts some apathy from his past. Mike Rezendes (Mark Ruffalo) and Sacha Pfeiffer (Rachel McAdams) are investigative journalists who are lapsed Roman Catholics. As the team interviews victims of abuse, they are frustrated by a bureaucratic mentality that blocks their pursuit of evidence.

Given that Ben Bradlee Jr. (John Slattery) is involved, Spotlight feels like a generational sequel to All the President’s Men, given Ben Bradlee Sr.’s involvement with that White House scandal. The methods of journalistic investigation are similar. Both films reveal what successful journalistic investigations used to be.

Spotlight has a conscience. As the team (and the audience) get closer to the truth, each character is given a moment of confession. This film is full of dialogue, but the pace does not drag and the story is strong. Spotlight is a must-see.

Touched With Fire opens tomorrow. Katie Holmes portrays a bipolar poet who tries to balance the mania of creativity with the stability of a love life. Inspired by writer/director Paul Dalio’s personal struggles with bipolar disease, Touched With Fire also stars Griffin Dunne, Christine Lahti and Luke Kirby.

For those seeking less serious entertainment, join the Deadpool bandwagon. Deadpool is rude, crude and socially unacceptable, yet so funny … more next week.